What Did I Do?
by babygirl669
Summary: Clare is in a relationship with Drew during their Senior year of high school. Drew does something to screw it up and push Clare back into the arms of an old flame.
1. The Break-Up

**Clare POV**

I was walking around the corner when I saw the piercing green eyes of the boy who once treated me like a princess. He smiled, and I forced one back at him, internally wincing as I did so. He then started to jog toward me. I stopped in my tracks.

"Clare," He said breathlessly once I was in earshot. "I am so sorry about what happened yesterday, I just got so jealous."

"Of what?" I spat out at him, pulling my long sleeves down even farther to help conceal what was left after yesterday.

"Of Dallas, you seem to want to be around him more than me." He stated, looking down at his gray and white canvas shoes.

I took a deep breath and replied, "Sometimes, I do. Sometimes I want nothing to do with you. And Dallas just happened to be someone I could stand to be around."

The look on Drew's face would make me crawl back to him a week ago, but things have changed, they've changed a lot.

"I can't believe you!" He shouted at me in the middle of the sidewalk. I looked at him with raised eyebrows; I know I was getting brave, all things considered. "Don't you fucking dare look at me like that." He declared through gritted teeth.

I cowered back slightly, replacing the faux surprised look in my eyes for a look of mild terror. He was scary when he was mad.

The jock always seemed like the guy every girl wanted, and that's still true within the walls of Degrassi, where no one knows. No one knows what he is capable of.

"Why don't we go somewhere quieter, more private to talk, Drew?" I said quietly, trying to diffuse the tension between us.

He let out a breath and reached out his hand, signaling for me to take it and walk with him.

I didn't want to, but I also didn't want to make this fight as public as he is going to.

I fit my hand into his, following him down the street to the Dot on the corner.

"We are going to sit outside, Clare." He said as we walked up to an outdoor table with two chairs. Perfect.

"Well, don't you want me to get us some coffee first, so we're not just loitering?" I asked him, trying to sound like I care.

"We won't be here long enough," he stated, looking at me with stone, cold eyes.

"Okay," I quietly said then sat across from him at the metal netted table.

I wasn't looking forward to talking about anything with him, especially about things that happened yesterday.

"Listen, Clare, I apologized, I feel bad, what more do you want from me? What can I do to make you forgive me?"

"Nothing, Drew. You can't do anything. What you did was unforgivable, and the mental scars left are more severe than the physical ones."

"I understand that, but I want to make it up to you." He said, looking everywhere but in my eyes. "Can I buy you flowers? Take you on an expensive date?"

I internally rolled my eyes. "No," This was pathetic, I can't believe him. "I will not take anything from you." I pushed my chair out from the table and moved to get up.

"Fine, then, we're over." He said, intending me to forgive him, just because my relationship with him is crumbling.

"Great." I turned and started to walk away.

"And you're not my Vice President anymore." Once again, he tried to hit me where he thought I would be hurt most.

I kept walking down the street.

He didn't say anything else.

My phone pinged, signaling that I had a notification on FaceRange:

 _ **Drew Torres**_ _tagged you in a post_

I rolled my eyes at the screen and tapped the notification.

 _ **Clare Edwards**_ _begged me for sex last night, and I gave it to her. Hard. LOL._

 **Thank you for reading this story, I do intend on continuing it. I was inspired by a Season 3 episode with Rick and Terri. Let me know what you think of this chapter!**


	2. The Flashback

**Clare POV**

I was sitting on the patio with Dallas. He was drinking a beer, while I stuck with a water. We were talking about how his team was doing at practices. True, I was not really interested in hockey of any sort, but I was making small talk, like I was always taught to do.

"Well, it kinda sucks with two players down." He said, referring to Cam, who committed suicide, and Luke, who was recently sent to jail for sexual assault of another student.

"I would bet," I replied, taking a sip of my water.

"Yeah, it's been a bit rough on the team's morale, but we're slowly building back up." He took a swig of his beer.

"I'm sure everything will be fine with you as captain." I said reassuringly. The sliding glass door scraped across its tracks as it was moved by a very angry-looking Drew Torres.

"Clare, can we talk? Alone?" He said pointedly in Dallas' direction.

Dallas got up, took a drink of his beer and walked into the house, just barely grazing by my fuming boyfriend.

I stayed silent as Drew looked down at me.

"What do you think you were doing with Dallas?"

"Um, talking with him? I was waiting for you to come home from school." I explained level-headedly, "Dallas was here, so I decided to sit and talk with him instead of mope around here like a loser."

"That is a load of bullshit, Clare, and you know it." Drew replied.

"How is that bullshit? It's the truth!" I exclaimed.

Before I knew it, Drew had my arm twisted behind my back and I was faced away from him.

"Don't fucking lie to me, Clare. I know you've been cheating on me." He said quietly in my ear. I yelled, and then his hand was over my mouth, muffling any noise that could possibly have escaped me. "You've been fucking Dallas behind my back. And who knows, maybe even Eli, too. He is back in town, right?" I could feel him getting angrier and angrier behind me, thinking up hundreds of false scenarios in which I have been unfaithful to him. "Maybe it's time I teach you a lesson."

My arm was ripped back around and suddenly I was facing a red-faced monster. This was not my boyfriend. He was nowhere close to that sweet guy from yesterday. This was a guy who was trained in MMA fighting, and more than willing to use it on his girlfriend to prove a point.

His grip was tight at a tourniquet around my wrist as he pulled open the sliding glass door and dragged me through it. I could feel his jagged nails digging into my flesh as we travelled through the media room that doubled as Dallas' bedroom. I bit my lip to keep from making noise out of fear of what could happen if a peep came out of me. Why couldn't I just not be polite and make that God forsaken small talk?

He finally let go of my wrist in front of his bedroom door. He then opened up access to the room and walked behind me, forcefully pushing me in.

Holy shit. What happened to him? This isn't the guy I started dating two months ago.

He pushed me onto the bed in the middle of the room. I was on my stomach. I couldn't see him. My dress was snug against my chest, and the flowy taffeta was clinging to my thighs in all the wrong places. In any other circumstance, I would be embarrassed as to how my lover, or former lover, was seeing me. But I was just scared, scared for my life, for my sanity, and most of all, for my mental health after all this was over.

Darcy had been through this, but she didn't know the guy, she didn't remember it happening.

I heard the foil package ripping. If I were any more naïve, I would think he was making Top Ramen, but I knew better. This was going to hurt.

My clingy skirt was lifted, and I lost all my dignity.

 **So sorry, I didn't expect it to get as dark as it did, but it really was the only way to make things fit. Thanks for reading this chapter as well. I'm still continuing this story. I have so many ideas. Review below please!**


	3. The Aftermath

**Clare POV**

I had just gotten home from the Dot. I was sitting on my bed, and I was crying. I looked at myself in the mirror across the room. I could see the massive bruises on my arms from ten feet away. I didn't know what to do.

I kept getting notifications from that damn Facebook post. People commenting on how Saint Clare wasn't so saintly anymore. People like Alli scolding Drew for posting something so vulgar about his girlfriend. People like Dallas asking if he was drunk posting, with a laughing-crying face following. No one knew how serious this situation was. And they weren't going to. End of story.

I stood up and winced and the pain creeping through my upper thighs. I had had sex before, a few times, and I had never ben sore like this.

I walked over to my dresser and grabbed a pair of jeans, and a long sleeved blouse, a pair of underwear, the granny-panty kind, and some socks. I carried them quickly across the hall to the bathroom so I could take a shower, thankful I didn't run into my mom on the sprint there.

I turned on the water and the steaming spray rained down into the tub. I looked into the mirror. There were bags under my eyes. My face looked almost unrecognizable. This was total bullshit. I wanted to slam something into my reflection.

I undressed as quickly as I possibly could, and I stepped into the water. The scalding steam pelting my body; stinging the wounds that lay on the surface, but numbing those that lay beneath.

I stood there, under the stream and cried. And cried. And cried. And cried. Until I had no more tears to cry and Jake was banging on the door, complaining that he had to fix his hair. What a pedestrian problem. If he only knew.

I stepped out of the shower and dried off. I redressed just as quickly as I had undressed, maybe even quicker. Then, I opened the door to see Jake standing in front of me. I had to bend my head almost to a ninety-degree angle just to see his face.

"You finished?" He asked snarkily.

"Quite," I responded, pushing past him and isolating myself in my bedroom.

I sat on my bed ready to stare at the wall until something motivated me to move, when I heard my IM _ping_ go off on my computer. Now, I understand that many in this situation would not want to see people or talk to them, but every case is different. I am the exception.

I picked up my laptop and looked at the message that had popped up on my screen:

 **E-Golds56:** _Are you all right?_

 **Clare_E42:** _Yeah, I guess. Why do you ask?_

 **E-Golds56:** _I saw Drew's post. It didn't sound like something you would do._

I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe I had made the wrong decision, dating Drew. Maybe I should have waited everything out with Eli. Maybe we truly are soulmates.

 **Clare_E42:** _You really do know me…_

 **E-Golds56:** _Do you want to go somewhere and talk?_

 **Clare_E42:** _Please?_

 **E-Golds56:** _I will be there in a few. Wait for me out front? Don't need Jake killing me._

 **Clare_E42:** _Of course._

I was smiling. Truly smiling for the first time in a while. Eli knows exactly how to make me feel better, what to say, and when to say it. He is my Prince Charming, and maybe this was my time to finally realize it.

I threw my bedroom door open, surprising Jake, who had just stepped out of the bathroom wearing only a towel. He let out a yelp, and me a giggle as I proceeded to bound down the stairs. I told my mom I was going somewhere with a friend and before she could object I raced out the door and onto the front steps.

I didn't have to wait very long, as Eli's parents lived about two blocks away from mine. His parent's big Volkswagen van pulled up in front of my house. I was black with painted skulls and flames along the body. Eli really was a direct image of his parents.

I jumped up and ran around the front of the car and hopped into the passenger seat. I literally mean hopped, too, the van was lifted, and I am much too short to just slide into a seat like that.

Eli turned to me as I finished buckling my seatbelt. "Where shall we go, miss?" He asked, a gentle twinkle in his eye.

"Um, let's go to the abandoned concert arena off 7th," I suggested to the dark-haired man sitting in the passenger seat.

"All right," he replied, gently pushing on the gas and driving in the direction of the former stadium.

 **All righty everyone! So sorry all of my writing takes the back burner when I am at school. I got a small burst of inspiration. Please review and let me know how you are liking this story and if you want to see more on this plot line!**


	4. The Story

**All righty everyone. Or like three people that may be reading this... I am in an epic writing mood right now, and I think I should use it while it lasts. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Review at the end please.**

 **Clare's POV:**

We arrived in the empty parking lot where the van may once have been commonplace. I unbuckled my seatbelt and went to open my door.

"Nope," Eli said, stopping my actions. He then got out and walked around the front of the vehicle to the passenger side. He gave the handle a hard pull and the door swung open, just missing a direct hit to his gorgeous face.

I stifled a laugh, placing one hand over my mouth while the other grabbed the one Eli was extending to help me out of the monstrous vehicle.

After I successfully exited, he locked and closed the doors, as if someone was going to come out to ransack it. He pulled the handle once more to ensure the door was indeed locked before turning around and placing a hand on my back, guiding me to the front entrance of the arena.

When we reached the multiple sets of double glass doors. I pulled on one of the handles, expecting it to be locked. Only to be surprised when it glided out of place and opened to let us in. Eli looked at me, excitement in his eyes as he took the door, letting me enter the stadium first, but he followed along shortly, replacing his hand on the small of my back. He was making sure I was safe.

It was the safest I had felt in my own skin since that day at Drew's. We stood at the top of the stairs for a moment before rushing down to the performance area. I climbed up onto the stage first, looking down at Eli with my head cocked to the left.

"Well, you comin'?" I asked, challenging him.

He placed one hand onto the five-foot high platform and jumped up gracefully. There was nothing this man couldn't do perfectly. When he was back upright, he crossed his legs and sat down. _Ping_. Just like that. He nodded his head, gesturing that I should do the same right in front of him.

So I did, that is why I'm here, no?

"What happened, Clare?" He asked as soon as I looked comfortable.

"Do you want the long or the short story?" I asked.

"I have nothing but time."

I nodded, took a breath and said, "Drew is an asshole," I closed my eyes, willing the tears that were threatening to emerge to stand down.

"What happened, Clare?" Eli repeated, placing a hand on my left knee. I felt the love in his voice.

"He's a jealous bastard, is what he is," I opened my eyes to see a sympathetic, but confused look etched across his face. I elaborated, "I was talking to Dallas, waiting for Drew to get home. He saw us talking and accused me of cheating on him." The tears bounced back into my ducts.

Eli started rubbing my knee, willing me to feel better.

I sniffed, but continued speaking, "He dismissed Dallas and grabbed my arm, twisting it around my back." I pulled up my right sleeve, revealing a hand-shaped bruise wrapping around my forearm.

Eli's eyes widened, and he scooted forward, gently grazing the dark coloring with his fingertips.

"He did this to you?" He asked, hurt clouding his eyes.

I didn't want to hurt him more but, "That's not it, Eli. He did more." Eli's eyes met mine and I wanted to cry, not because of my pain, but his. This man had done nothing but love and protect me, and another tore me down.

"What else did he do to you, Clare?" Eli asked, his voice cracking.

"The post was somewhat true, except I didn't ask for it. I didn't ask for any of it," I uncrossed my legs and brought my knees to my chest. The tears started to flow free with big, gasping sobs.

"That _bastard_ raped you?!" Eli bagan to get angry, his stages of grief passing like wind through a tunnel, "That guy is going to get a piece of my mind," when he got really angry, he started to talk like it was twenty or more years ago, and even in my state, I found it funny.

I started laughing at him.

"Oh, and now you're hysterical. Great. Just dandy."

I laughed harder, and soon, his anger dissipated and he joined me, rolling on the stage, laughing.

"Freeze!" Someone yelled from the top of the stairs.

 **I honestly didn't come up with that ending until I wrote the sentence before. But I think it adds a nice twist. Review below please!**

 **-Babygirl669**


	5. The Arrest

**Okay everyone, this is chapter 5. I will be writing ten chapters for this story, so stay tuned. Read and Review at the end, please!**

 **Clare's POV:**

I looked up at the top of the stadium stairs to see a bright light staring back at me.

"Toronto PD," the male voice said.

Eli and I had stopped our rolling and were sitting on the stage staring blankly at the cops.

"Put your hands on your heads while we come down to retrieve you," the voice commanded. Eli and I complied, not wanting to cause, apparently more, trouble.

I watched as the police duo slowly walked down the stairs, guns and flashlights in hand.

"Do you two realize you are trespassing on private property?" The male cop asked us.

"No, sir," Eli answered for the both of us, knowing I would be unable to form coherent words.

"Well, you are. How old are the two of you?" He asked, lowering his gun, but holding the flashlight high, directing it into our faces.

"I'm eighteen, and she is seventeen, sir," Eli continued to speak for us, and very politely, too. Not to say I was surprised, but I had never heard him speak like this.

The cop who was talking to Eli directed his partner to get onto the stage. She hopped up, about as effortlessly as Eli had, I scrunched up my face because it seems like I was the only loser who couldn't do it.

The officer stood behind me, and I heard her pull out her handcuffs. I started to panic.

"Clare, it's okay. Everything will be okay," Eli said next to me. "I will be right here next to you, all right?" Strangely enough, his words calmed me down to make it possible for the officer to guide my hands behind my back and fasten them together with the metal cuffs. I winced a little when she grazed my bruises but held a strong outer persona.

Once I was cuffed, she moved on to Eli, who held hard as a rock while she moved his wrists behind his back and handcuffed them together.

"All right, boss, let's take them in," She said to her male partner.

As we were walked off the back stage steps and back up the stairs, the woman read us our rights. My only question is why the arrest? Shouldn't it have been a warning? We weren't hurting anyone or doing drugs.

But nonetheless, there we were, in handcuffs being tucked neatly into the backseat of a police cruiser on our way to the police station, where we would be held in custody until my parents could free me, and his could try and free him.

Sometimes adulthood sucks.

The ride to the station was short but uncomfortable, as I suspected most journeys handcuffed were. Eli was talking softly next to me the entire time, keeping me calm. I was surprised the officers let him do it. Maybe they couldn't hear him.

When we arrived, the officers walked us through the station like trophies, then asked us each for our identification cards. Mine was in the purse slung across my body; his was in his wallet in his back pocket. They took both then led us to a lone cell in the back of the precinct.

The male uncuffed Eli while the female uncuffed me when we got into the cell.

"Your boyfriend said some very nice things to you in the back of the car," she said quietly in my ear while undoing the cuffs.

I almost corrected her, saying he wasn't my boyfriend, but instead I said, "Yeah, I'm pretty lucky."

She smiled at me and told us both, "We are going to contact your parents to come pick you up, all right?"

We both nodded, knowing there wasn't really another way out of this.

As they walked away, I heard the male say, "I think we broke up a fight with that kid a couple years ago."

I almost laughed, but held it in untIL I knew they were out of earshot.

Eli rolled his eyes, "What now?"

"Oh, nothing," I replied, winking at him.

We sat down on the bed provided and looked at one another.

"Well, this is a pickle we've gotten ourselves into, isn't it?" I joked.

"It was your idea," Eli reminded me.

"The doors should've been locked. They were just _begging_ to be opened."

Eli was smiling, but suddenly got serious, placing a hand on my knee, "Are you all right?"

I took a deep breath, thinking of an accurate way to depict my feelings, "No, but I will be. Today with you has helped, more than you know, Eli," I said, resting my hand on top of his,

Still looking into my eyes, he turned his hand over and intertwined our fingers. I looked down at the locked appendages and smiled, genuinely smiled. His other hand reached forward and stabilized my head while he placed a kiss on my temple. I closed my eyes and leaned into him, enjoying the moment.

"Your son did this to our daughter!" I heard a voice yell from the lobby of the police station.

I opened my eyes and sighed, "That's my mother."

"My son? Your daughter and my son are good friends. They would have done this together, as a team. I'm sure they didn't mean any harm."

I grinned, "And that's mine," said Eli.

The cops who arrested us same around the corner, jail key in hand, ready to let us out. I gave Eli's hand one last squeeze before getting up to meet my fate with my mother.


	6. The Story Part Deux

**Here is chapter 6! I hope you all enjoy it enough to leave a nice review at the end. Or hate it enough to leave a bad one. I really just want feedback... And a puppy.**

 **Clare's POV:**

"You are _beyond_ grounded young lady," my mom sternly informed me when we were in the car, just me, he, and my stepdad Glen.

"Okay, mom," I conceded, looking out the back passenger seat window at the passing trees. Flowers were blooming at the side of the road, pops of bright pinks, yellows, and whites in fields of green and gray.

"Are you even listening to me, Clare Diane?" She asked, exasperated.

"Yes, mom. I am in trouble. I am grounded," I repeated back to her, acknowledging what she had already expressed to me.

She _hmphed_ from the driver's seat, but said no more. There was nothing left to say; what's done is done.

The drive to the house was short, but only because I was distracted. Distracted by thought of Eli, thoughts of Drew, thought of what Drew did to me, and thoughts of how Eli handled the information.

He really is one of the best people I have ever met, will ever meet.

When we arrived home, I exited the car, purse in hand and moved quickly through the house up to my bedroom. This is where I pulled out my journal and began writing about the exhilarating adventure on which Eli and I just embarked.

Ten minutes into writing, a knock bounced on my door. I tucked away my journal and said, "Come in."

The doorknob turned slowly, and a head popped in. I tilted my head curiously at the tall figure trying to make his way in.

"Can I come all the way in?" My stepbrother, Jake, asked.

"Yeah, sure," I replied, clearing a spot on my bed for him to sit.

"Thanks," he said, "So, you were hanging out with Eli?" He observed quite well for a boy his age.

"Yes, but we were just hanging out. It was all just a huge misunderstanding, I swear," I rambled.

"Clare, you got arrested," Jake said, pointing out more of the obvious.

"Yes, and I got out as soon as they called my mom. I don't really understand _why_ they arrested us anyway. It should have been a warning, at most," I really hated being in trouble, and if I could talk myself out of it, all the better.

"Clare-," Jake started.

"I just needed to talk to Eli, all right?" I said defensively, cutting him off.

"That's fine, Clare, but did you have to get arrested in the process?" He was trying to speak level-headedly to me, but my emotions were running high, and I wouldn't hear any of it.

"You just don't understand," I threw my arms up to my head, gripping my hair. While performing this over dramatic action, my sleeves fell down to my elbows, revealing my bruises.

Jake's eyes darted to the blue and purple on white skin.

"Clare..." He trailed off, not really knowing what to say.

I quickly brought my hands down and struggled to grip the sleeves' hems to pull them back to their rightful positions covering my wrists.

"Clare, who did this to you? Was it Eli? Did that _dirtbag_ hurt you more?" Jake asked, getting angrier by the second.

"Jake, no. Eli was helping me. He got me talking about it. About what happened," I tried to explain to him.

"Well then, what actually happened, Clare? And why did you talk to Eli? Why not your boyfriend? Drew probably won't be happy you did that."

And just like that, I was crying again. Not even pretty crying, I was full-on ugly crying at the mere _mention_ of Drew's name.

Jake was looking at me, concerned and confused as to what he said to set me off.

It was then that my phone rang, but it was across the room, so I motioned for Jake to pick it up.

"It's Eli," he said, holding the phone as if it would shatter spontaneously.

"Answer it, he can explain what happened," I told him, not trusting myself to get the story out again.

He took a breath and looked at me. When I nodded, he pressed and slid he "answer call" prompt.

He held the phone up to his ear and said, "Eli, it's Jake." He shook his head as he listened to Eli talk on the other end. "She's not really in the mindset to speak right now. She asked me to have you tell me why she didn't talk to Drew about her problems. Why she came to you."

I heaved a body-wrecking sob out, clenching a pillow to my chest in dire need of a grounding force.

I watched Jake nod as Eli reiterated the story on the other end of the line. Jake was already mad before the call, but after Eli was finished, he was downright wrathful. He looked at me, fire in his eyes.

"He did _what_ to her? I'm going to fucking kill him," he swore. I got up off my bed, tears rolling down my face and hugged him.

"Jake, please don't do anything. Just keep it to yourself. You weren't supposed to see," I pleaded. His ear was still pressed up against the phone, but he then brought it down in front of my face.

"Eli wants to speak to you," he said monotonously, trying obviously to keep his temper in check. After I had a hold of the phone, he peeled me off his waist and left the room, still fuming.

"Hello?" I said into the speaker.

"Hello, beautiful girl," responded the ever-sexy Eli Goldsworthy. I smiled through my tears.

"Hi," I simply said back, replacing my butt into the semi-permanent impression on my bed.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, worry consuming every syllable.

"Not very well. I can't even hear his name without completely shattering. How am I going to make it through school tomorrow?"

"I will be there," he said proudly.

"You already graduated, dummy. Don't remember that big ceremony where you had to wear a dress for a flimsy piece of paper?"

"Ha, ha. So what? Simpson loves me! He's even seen me naked," Eli boasted, knowing it would get a giggle out of me.

And it did.

"You were high, doofus," I clarified his reasoning.

"Still happened. Still counts," I could practically see him winking at me over the phone. "And what with all this name calling?"

"I smiled and said, "Just making up for lost time. And fine, have fun convincing Simpson to let you crash."

"Oh, I will," he replied.

I was looking in the mirror across from me. My face was puffy and red from crying. My mascara was staining my cheeks in the most unattractive streaks. "I'm a disaster," I said out loud to myself.

"No, you're not, Clare," Eli stated through the line.

"I _look_ like a trainwreck, Eli," I pressed the issue.

"You are always gorgeous to me, Blue Eyes."

 **Could there have been any cuter way to end this chapter? Probably. But this is how I did it. I should have an update for you all on Monday. You all being like a cat and two friends.**

 **-Babygirl669**


	7. The Bodyguard

**Okie doke, here we go with Chapter 7. It is a tad bit longer than the previous chapters, so fasten your seatbelts for a wild ride. Leave any ideas for dialogue in the reviews below, I would love to hear from you.**

 **Clare's POV:**

I woke up the next morning in a cold sweat. I felt like I had a two ton weight resting on my chest.

I had a nightmare, a night terror of what Drew had done to me, and Eli could do nothing to stop it. I sat up in bed and brought my knees up to my chest, letting tears flow free, but trying to keep my sobs to a minimum. There was no reason to get my mother and Glen involved in all this just because they heard me.

I stole a glance at the clock through blurry eyes. I blinked quickly to clear the tears clouding my vision. It was 6:30 in the morning. Not exactly, but it was close enough, so I dragged myself out of bed and tore through my closet to find a dark colored long sleeved shirt and a pair of decent jeans. Finally, after five minutes of rifling and flinging clothes off their hangers, I found a deep purple shirt and a light denim pair of jeans. They both fit well enough to get me through the day without feeling self-conscious about them and how they looked on me.

I dressed quickly then walked quietly across the hallway to the bathroom and pulled out my small makeup bag. I got out my tinted moisturizer and slathered a pump all over my face. I dotted concealer under my eyes, hoping it would do something about my intense dark circles. I patted it in with my ring finger and looked closely at my reflection. It wasn't much, but it was something. I then set my entire face with powder using a giant fluffy brush. I applied one coat of mascara and some lipstick before brushing my hair gently with my wide-toothed comb.

Jake appeared at the door, looking disgruntled. "You doing okay?" He asked, looking down at me, resting an arm on the door jamb.

"I'm fine. Eli is going to come with me to school. Everything will be okay," I reassured him.

He looked at me with a confused expression on his face, "Eli graduated, how is he going to be there?"

"He said he would take care of it with Simpson. I trust him enough, but I have no idea how he plans on doing that," I confessed.

As if he could hear the conversation, Eli's name popped up on my phone sitting on the bathroom counter.

"Hello?" I answered, pulling the phone up to my ear.

"I am on my way over to pick you up for school," he informed me, getting to the point promptly.

"All right, I just have to slip on my shoes, and I will be ready," I responded, gliding past Jake on my way back to my room.

"Okay, mm-bye," Eli said before hanging up his line.

I grabbed a pair of purple velvet flats from the floor of my closet and slipped them on carefully. I then gripped the strap of my backpack and pulled my arms through so it rested comfortably on my shoulders.

I left my room with more of a skip in my step knowing Eli was going to be there for me all day. Jake placed a hand on my elbow just as I was about to descend the stairs.

"Be careful today, Clare," he told me.

I nodded back at him, but said nothing. I ran down the stairs and grabbed the lunch I had made for myself the night before, sticking it in my backpack's front pocket.

My mom was sitting at the dining room table, sipping at a mug of coffee, "You seem chipper this morning," she observed.

"It's Monday. I am as chipper as Monday can allow," I grabbed an apple from the bowl on the counter and headed to the door. "I'll see you when you get home from work, mom."

I didn't wait for her reply before opening the door and escaping the house into the crisp spring morning. I had exited just in time to see the van round the corner onto my street. I stood on the sidewalk, waiting for the vehicle to stop in front of me. I grinned at the man in the driver's seat; it's just like old times.

I quickly scrambled into the vehicle, setting my backpack down at my feet. Eli looked at me, smile in his eyes as I buckled my seatbelt over my chest and lap.

"You look good today, Edwards," he said.

"Thanks, but this is how I normally look," I responded, correcting him.

"No, you look extra exuberant this fine morning," he said. Before I could correct him again, he pushed on the gas, and we were flying through my neighborhood.

I grabbed at the handle above my head, "Dude!" I exclaimed, hoping he would slow the hell down.

"I will not go the speed limit until you admit you are as beautiful as I think you are," he challenged me, flipping down my visor mirror, forcing me to look at my reflection.

"Fine, fine, I look pretty! Can you slow down, please? Before you get us both killed!" I was panicking, but laughing at the same time. He honestly always knew exactly how to cheer me up when I needed it most. When we were back travelling at a decent speed, I looked at myself more intently. My eyes were standing our today; their crystal blueness popping out against the deep purple of my shirt.

Eli must have noticed my silence, "You are absolutely stunning, Clare."

"Thank you," I answered graciously.

We sat in relative silence the rest of the ride to school. He parked the van in the hearse's old spot.

As I unbuckled I asked, "How are you anticipating on getting into my classes today?"

"Don't worry about it. Wait outside the office for me to get you, okay?" He assured me that he will be able to do as he promised.

I grabbed my backpack from the space at my feet and opened my door. Eli got out after me and walked around to the back of the van to meet me. I smiled to myself because of how sweet he was being to me. I felt as if I didn't deserve it, but I knew he would disagree with me until my dying breath.

We walked to the front of the school, his arm draped over my shoulders, just like the previous two years. He guided me up the steps and to the chairs in front of the office.

"I will be back in a minute," Eli reassured me, taking my hand and planting a kiss on the back of it. I smiled, taking off my backpack and rifling through it to find one of my several reading books. Eli left me behind, walking toward Simpson's office, glancing back at me before knocking.

I cracked open my book and began reading. I was, however, too anxious to enjoy the words on the page. I kept expecting Drew to walk through the doors and make me feel stupid and vulnerable and worthless once again.

 **Eli's POV:**

"Come in," I heard Simpson say from inside.

I opened the door, peeking in before fully stepping into the office. "Hi, Mr. Simpson," I said, offering my hand for him to shake in greeting.

He stood and took my hand from over his desk. "Please, Eli, sit down," he gestured to the seats in front of his desk. I obliged. "How can I help you today," he asked.

"Well, over the weekend some… things happened with Clare. I have been helping her out, and I was wondering if it would be okay if I could shadow her throughout the school day," I got straight to the point.

"Eli, I'm not sure if I could do that for you without knowing what happened to her," Simpson explained, pressing me to divulge information.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Simpson. I am not at liberty to tell you what has happened to her, and at the moment, I believe she is in too fragile a state to properly speak about it," I confessed to him.

He raised his blond eyebrows at me, "Does she need an appointment with Ms. Sauvé?"

"Maybe later, but today she needs me; she _wants_ me with her," I was practically begging him to spend a day with my ex-girlfriend.

"Isn't she dating Drew?" Simpson asked the dreaded question.

I sighed, "She was, before this weekend. Things ended badly, and she is afraid he will hurt her," I explained in the simplest terms I could muster, taking a glance out the office window to see Clare reading her book, her eyebrows knitted together like a finely woven scarf.

A lump rose in my throat, she looked like she was hurting.

"Please," I finally pleaded, "I want to help her any way I can, and she insisted she come to school today."

Simpson looked at me with a serious look on his face, then broke into a smile. "Any person would be lucky to have a friend like you, Eli. Go, take care of her." I smiled back at him. When I reached the door, his voice caught my attention again, "Eli? Do I need to speak to the student body president today?"

I took a second to think about it, then shook my head, "No, I think we should all wait until Clare is ready to come forward." Without another word, I left the office, closing the door quietly behind me.

 **Clare's POV:**

I looked up to see Eli walking toward me with a smile on his face. I smiled back at him; his emotions were truly contagious. He sat himself in the light blue chair to the right of me, draping an arm over my shoulders.

"Guess you are stuck with me, Edwards," he teased me, squeezing my left shoulder.

"As if I could get rid of you. I've tried, like, twice before, yet here you are," I teased back, leaning into his embrace. I closed my eyes, relishing in the safe feeling being in his arms brought me.

"Oh, how cute," and all-too-familiar venom-laced voice shot through the silence that had finally fallen in my head. I opened my eyes to see a tall, blue-eyed, black-haired monster I used to call my boyfriend. I expected to have tears spring to my eyes, for my chest to tighten so severely that I couldn't move, for a knot in my stomach to contract until my guts were sprayed upon the occupants of the foyer. But no, I wasn't sad, I was mad. I was ridiculously furious at Drew.

I moved to get up, but Eli held me where I was. "Drew, this is none of your business," Eli replied to Drew's snarky comment, showing how effective of a bodyguard he could really be.

Drew looked us both over, but left in a huff, clearly upset he hadn't hurt me more, hit me harder.

"That was immature, wasn't it?" I said to diffuse the tense energy I felt radiating off Eli's body.

He slowly relaxed, "Maybe if her weren't such an idiot, he would have graduated on time," he joked back at me.

I laughed and gathered my bag from the floor as the bell rang, signaling students to get to their homeroom classes.

"Come on, Prince Charming, I'm going to be late for class," I said, holding out my hand for him to take.

 **Thanks for reading everyone. I hope you liked it. Leave reviews below. What do you think is going to happen next?**

 **-Babygirl669**


	8. The Confession

**Only two more chapters after this one, then this fic will be complete. Tell your friends about this story if you feel so inclined to do so.**

 **Clare's POV:**

After the first encounter, school went by smoother than I ever could have imagined. Eli was my rock, even when I didn't realize it.

He sat in the back of classrooms all day, keeping a vigilant, watchful eye over my mental well-being. If I even thought about Drew, he knew and was thumbs on his phone, letting me know he could take me out of the class if I needed it.

I didn't, of course, but the sentiment was there.

Between classes, he was holding my hand, like old times, and keeping his eyes peeled for a vengeful Drew Torres. A few old friends of his tried to stop him to talk, but he politely told them he could not and guided me through the halls once again.

After school, he walked me to his van and opened the door for me to get in. He lifted me by the waist to make the ascent easier on my small body. He then closed the door and hopped on the other side of the vehicle effortlessly. He turned the key in the ignition and the engine sputtered to life, allowing us to escape the parking lot scot-free.

"That wasn't so bad, actually," I said to him once we were out of sight of the Community School.

"No, it really wasn't. I am kind of extremely glad I am done with that crap though," he confessed to me.

I laughed and turned back to watch the road ahead of us. Something was off, though. I could tell Eli wanted to say something, get something off his chest.

"What?" I asked him, coating my voice with sarcasm, letting him know that I knew there was something up with him. I removed my gaze from the street to look at his sculpted features.

We pulled up to a stoplight, and he closed his eyes, taking a second to breathe deeply before speaking to me. "I think you need to see a counselor or a therapist of something. Simpson mentioned getting an appointment with Ms. Sauvé." I was taken aback. I wasn't feeling defensive, just heartbroken.

"You told Simpson?" I asked, my voice small.

"I told him enough. He knows it involves Drew. He knows whatever it is happened this weekend. I didn't tell him any specifics. I promise you, Clare."

It was my turn to close my eyes. That made me feel better, but this entire situation's story was spreading like wildfire; it was overwhelming. "I don't know why I didn't keep this to myself. The more people who get involved, the bigger the problem gets," I expressed, frustrated.

"Clare, I understand that you are hurting, and you don't have to tell the whole world. Make an appointment, if you don't feel like talking about it with her, talk about something else until you are ready to start healing," he told me calmly.

I breathed, my eyes still closed, settling my mind. The van moved forward slowly, the light must have turned green.

"I'm sorry, Clare. I'm sorry all this happened to you, and I'm sorry I am pushing you to move faster than you are willing," Eli said remorsefully.

My eyes snapped open. "It is _not_ your fault. None of this is. Especially not everyone finding out. That's my own dumb fault," I said, exasperated.

He didn't say anything more. We finished the drive to my house in an uncomfortable silence. I wanted him to stop blaming himself, and he wanted me to start.

We pulled up in front of my house. He started straight ahead, a pissed off look on his face. I gathered my backpack and moved to get out.

"Wait," I heard him say. I turned back around. "I don't like seeing you hurting, Clare, that's all."

"I love you, Eli," I blurted, my eyes wide with surprise at my confession.

"I love you, too, Clare," he repeated back to me. "Now go inside. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

I nodded, climbing out of the van and walking around the front of it. I reached the door and turned the doorknob to find it open. I glanced over my shoulder to wave at Eli, motioning him to leave, that I was safely able to get inside. He nodded and waved back, a neutral expression on his face.

Jake must have been home for the door to already be unlocked, right? Wrong. Well, sort of. He was there, but as I entered the living room, my mom and Glen were talking quietly to one another on the sofa.

"Mom? What are you doing home so early?" I asked, heading to the kitchen to grab a snack.

"Clare, honey, we need to talk," she said, concern coating her voice.

"What's going on, mom?" I asked, walking around the counter to sit on the coffee table in front of my parents.

"Why don't you tell us?" she asked.

"I'm confused," I said.

"Jake told me about what happened with Drew," Glen said, breaking his silence next to my mother.

I was speechless. I was frozen.

"Yes, honey, we know. Why didn't you tell us?" My mom tried to reason with me.

"Don't you think there was a reason I _didn't_ want to tell you?" I asked defensively, standing up and hurrying up the stairs to my room.

I whipped open my door, entered then slammed the slab of wood closed again. I sat on my bed, pissed to the brink of my emotional capacity.

I heard a knock on my door. I didn't answer. My mother entered anyway to see me staring angrily at my reflection from across the room.

"Clare, I know how hard this must be for you," she tried to sympathize.

"Oh, do you?" Because last time I checked, your boyfriend didn't rape you." I knew I was out of line, but she had no idea what I was experiencing.

She took a breath to visibly calm herself down after my outburst. "You're right. I don't know. I want you to know you're not alone. You need to talk about it, and not just with Jake and Eli. We need to explore your options. It's not healthy to coop all these feelings inside."

I conceded, "I know, mom. I don't know if I'm ready yet. I'm coping, but I don't want to have to retell the story over and over at this point."

"Do you want him to pay for what he's done for you?" My mom asked, looking me directly in the eye.

"I mean, of course I do," I told her truthfully.

"Then let's go to the hospital. Right now. One thing we learned with Darcy, if anything good came out of that, is that we need to act quickly," she grasped my hand gently and pulled me to my feet.

I followed her. I felt as if I had control. I knew I was doing the right thing.

 **Two more chapters left. It gets dark in the next chapter with a surprise twist at the end, and the final chapter is light and fluffy. Review below, please!**

 **-Babygirl669**


	9. The Denial

**One more chapter until this is complete. Let me know what you're thinking about the story in reviews.**

 **Clare's POV:**

"All, right, Ms. Edwards, we are finished here," the doctor said, unstirruping my ankles and letting me sit upright on the examination table.

"How are you doing, Clare?" My mom asked as she entered the room. She must have been notified we were done by a passing nurse.

"I'm okay," I responded, clasping my hands together in my lap.

"I will be back shortly with your results," the doctor informed us, exiting the sterile room.

"Are you sure you're okay doing this, sweetie?" My mom made sure my mindset was right.

"Yes, mom, I want to press charges. He deserves it," I reassured her.

" _You_ deserve closure. _You_ deserve justice," she corrected me.

I gave her a small smile, and we waited for the doctor to re-enter the examination room.

A nurse stepped in and told me I could change into my regular clothes while I wait. My mom exited the room until I was decent again. She entered the room and right as I sat on the table again, the doctor knocked and opened the door.

He closed it behind him and looked at the computer with my information displayed on it before speaking.

"The good news first: there was no severe damage. Physically, you should be feeling good as new in a few days." I nodded, taking in his information. "The bad news, however, is that he did use a condom, so there is no DNA evidence to tell us he did in fact sexually assault you." He looked truly sorry to give me that news.

"Can we still file charges against him?" My mother asked, sitting in a chair in the corner of the room.

"I would not be the one to ask. The police will be here in a few minutes to take your statement, though. They can inform you on the correct path to take to make sure the law stays on your side," he said, looking at me.

"Thank you, doctor," My mom said. I nodded and the doctor left, leaving us to play another waiting game in the exam room. This time, it didn't take as long.

A nurse escorted two detectives into the room. Both were female, one with long brunette hair, the other with short blonde hair. The brunette was shorter than the blonde, but they looked like they would work well together.

"Hi there, Clare." The blonde said, extending her hand to shake mine, "My name is Detective Rose Montoya," I took her hand and smiled. She gestured toward her partner, "This is detective Harriet Schuyler," I nodded to her in acknowledgement.

"We received word that you have been sexually assaulted," Detective Schuyler said. "Is this correct?"

"Yes," I answered simply, seeing my mom's hand cover her mouth out of the corner of my eye.

"Do you know who did this to you?" She continued to question Montoya had taken a seat and was jotting down my answers on a small pad of paper.

"Yes, my ex-boyfriend," I said.

"What is his name, Clare?" Detective Montoya asked.

"Andrew Torres," I told her.

"Thank you," she said graciously, writing it down.

Then Detective Schuyler said, "I'm sorry to be doing this, but I am going to need you to recount your experience to us. You can pause if you need to, but we will need to get the full story before we leave here today. Is this all right with you, Clare?" I nodded. "Is it okay if we record your statement today?" I nodded again and waited for them to get their system set up.

Before pressing record, Detective Montoya looked at my mom, " You don't have to hear this. You can sit outside."

She shook her head, "No, I will be with my daughter through this entire process."

The detectives both nodded their heads and pressed record.

I told them everything. I told them the gruesome details of him squeezing my arms until I felt them bruise, and the petty details of my worrying how I looked to him in a moment when it shouldn't have even occurred to me.

My mother was in tears, thinking about how both of her babies have experienced this horror.

Two days later, I heard an angry knock at the front door. My mom answered it, but I peeked down the stairs to catch some of the drama.

Audra, Drew's mom, was at the front door, flanked on either side by Drew and Dallas. I guess they were there for emotional support.

I couldn't really hear what my mom was saying, but the whole block knew what the argument was about.

"You filed charges against my son! Maybe you should check your daughter's credibility," Audra said defensively.

My mom moved to invite the angry woman inside, but she stayed firm on the front porch, hands on her hips.

"He hasn't done anything wrong, Mrs. Edwards," I knew my mom corrected her to call her Mrs. Martin/

"I don't care what you call yourself. You and your daughter have accused my son of something he didn't do."

I saw Dallas take a breath and say something.

"What?" Audra asked, flabbergasted.

"I saw him do it, Mrs. Torres, Mrs. Martin. I saw him rape Clare."


	10. The Make-Up

**Final chapter, everyone. Thanks to the few of you that consistently read the chapters being posted. You're the best readers an author can ask for.**

 **Clare's POV:**

We all hopped into out respective family's cars and hurried off to the police station. Audra was furious, she had already lost one son; she didn't need to lose another.

Dallas talked to the detectives working my case. An eyewitness report was the least reliable type of evidence, but it was all we had for the moment.

The trip to the station took about two hours, then we were back out at our cars.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Martin, Clare, for accusing you of falsely blaming my son. And I'm sorry for what he has done to your daughter," Audra apologized politely.

"No matter. You were protecting him however you could. I am sorry you must go through this," my mom said.

"It'll all work out in the end," the Torres' mom said as she climbed into her car, where the two boys were glaring angrily straight ahead. She waved goodbye and drove off.

I turned to my mom. "Could you drop me off at Eli's, please?" I asked as politely as I could muster.

"Yes, oh, sure, honey," she responded, opening up the driver's side door. I got in the passenger side. As we were pulling away from the police station parking lot, my mom asked, "So, are you and Eli back together?"

I had to think about it. I knew I wanted to be, but did he? Did he want to be with a girl as damaged as I am? "No, mom. We are just friends right now," I finally answered.

"Do you still love him?" She asked. It felt weird to be talking about my love life with my mom, but after all we had been through in the previous couple days, I felt as if I didn't want to hide anything from her.

"Of course I do," I responded, looking at her as if she had two heads.

"If I have learned anything in the last few years, it is that if you love someone as much as I know you do Eli, you don't waste any time with anyone else, or contemplating being with them. I'm sorry if this makes you feel weirdly, but I have noticed how much your esteem fell when you two parted."

She was making valid points, and I would be an idiot not to follow her advice.

"Is that what you did with Glen?" I asked, curious.

"Actually, no. I wish I had, though. We sort of drifted together without any grand gestures," she explained.

"I see," I said, thinking about Eli. "Are you okay with me being with him?"

"Whatever makes you happy," she answered, indecisively. I hate when parents do that, it doesn't help me make the right decision, one that will be right for everyone that matters.

"Yes or no, mom. I don't want you to be upset with me because I chose someone you don't like," I said, exasperated with her.

"He has been there for you in ways that I could never be. You let him in. I am resentful of that in some aspects. However, having someone in your life like that is everything and more than I have wished for you. So, yes, I very much approve of him." She was in tears, this time of the happy variety.

I smiled at her, "Thank you, mom. I love you," I said.

"I love you, too, sweetie," she replied.

We rode the final few minutes to the Goldsworthy house in silence, save for the sniffles coming from my mom's post-cry.

She pulled up in front of the house to let me out.

"I won't wait up," she said, smiling at me, trust in her eyes.

"Thanks, mom," I said, closing the car door and hopping up the steps to Eli's front door. I knocked three times in succession. Bullfrog answered the door about thirty second later.

"Clare! We were wondering when we were going to see you again," he opened his arms, accepting me in a hug. I wrapped my arms around him in return.

"Where is that son of yours?" I asked after stepping through the doorway into the house.

"Where else? In his room," he growled, winking at me.

I smiled and said my thanks, running down the stairs to the room with the door closed.

I didn't bother knocking. As I turned the knob, I asked, "Is everyone decent in here?"

He smiled from where he was sitting on the bed, reading a comic book. "What's up, Clare?" He greeted me.

"Not very much. Just a bit of evidence that helps my case popped up today," I told him, barely able to contain my excitement.

He sat up straighter, curiosity radiating off him, "What are you talking about?"

"Even if it's sort of embarrassing, Dallas saw what Drew did to me, and he told his story to the detectives today." I grinned at the love of my life.

"That's amazing, Clare!" He said, getting up from his bed and hugging me, lifting me off the floor and twirling once in a circle.

I was laughing, head thrown back, feeling careless in his arms.

He set me back down gracefully on my feet.

"You look good, Edwards," he observed, smirk adorning his face.

"You're not so bad yourself, Goldsworthy," I shot back, grinning at him.

He gestured to his bed as an invitation to take a seat. I did so and watched him do the same across from me.

"Do you want to talk about that little outburst you had in the van Monday" he asked, getting serious suddenly.

"I meant it, Eli. I will always mean it. I love you. How you have been through this nightmare only solidifies it. I want to be with you for the rest of my life." I was ready to spill all my feelings, there is nothing I could say I would ever regret.

"I need to know that you're all in," he said simply, just like a year ago when we were in the Torres' backyard. So much has changed since then.

"Eli, I am _all_ in," I leaned forward and kissed him.

His arms wrapped around my body, keeping me safe from whatever horrors may come to attack and claim me.

My hands were clasped behind his neck, gently pulling him into me.

There was, there is no other place I would rather be than in his embrace.

He pulled away from me, "I love you, Clare."

"Forever and always," I responded locking my blue-eyed gaze with his green one. "Forever and always."

 **This is it, guys. Let me know what you thought of it below. Thanks for reading!**

 **-Babygirl669**


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